Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), poses an unprecedented threat for global health. Even in the context of intensified vaccine rollout, identifying efficacious therapeutics remains a priority in case of severe forms of COVID-19. During the early phases of the pandemic, efforts were addressed at investigating repurposed therapeutic agents with antiviral and/or immuno-modulating properties, culminating in a broad multi-arm international trial (WHO SOLIDARITY) testing, among others, Interferon β−1a (IFNβ−1a) [1], a recombinant pharmaceutical compound of the human cytokine IFNβ belonging to the type I interferon family.
